Spring means



J y- 1,1953 N, 1;. WAHLBERG ETAL 2,646,275

' SPRING MEANS Opiginal Filed Jan. 22, 11942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 THE! A Trek/ Viv July 21, 1953 N. E. WAHLBERG ET AL SPRING MEANS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Jan. 22, 1942 NILS ERIK wnmaska auarnv v. HEDJ EOM" INVENTORJ BY X Patented July 21, 1953 T UNITED :STAT

:SPRING MEANS Nils Erik'Wahlberg, Chicago,-Ill., and Gustav v. Hedstrom, Kenosha, Wis., assignors to Nash- Kelvinator Corporation, Kenosha, Wis., a corporation of Maryland Original application January 22, 1942, Serial No. 427,706, now Patent No. 2,437,844, dated March 16, 1948. Divided and this application July 8,

, 1947, Serial No. 759,484 v '5 Claims. (Cl. 267-63) This application is a division of the co-pending application for a wheel suspension, Serial No. 427,706, filed January 22, 1942, now Patent No. 2,437,844, issued-March 16, 1948, by the applicants, Nils Erik Wahlberg and Gustav V. I-Iedstrom.

-This'invention relates to spring means and has particular reference to a tubular rubber spring for supporting the road wheels of an automobil on the frame of the automobile.

It is an object of this invention to provide rubber tension spring for a road wheel.

It is another object of thisinvention to provide means for mounting a tubular rubber spring so that it will support a road wheel by tension loads in the spring.

It is another object of this invention to provide means for connecting the opposite ends of a tubular rubber spring between an automobile frame and a wheel spindle. 7

It is another object of this invention to provide means for guiding the free end of a tubular rubber spring relative to a king pin about which a steering knuckle attached to the spring is rotatable. I I 1 It is another object of this invention to provide a rubber tension spring for supporting a steering knuckle on a king pin, which spring will seal the bearings between the king pin and knuckle from dust and moisture,

It is another object of this invention to provide means for securely bonding the ends of a rubber spring to the metallic parts of a wheel suspension structure. I

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from a 'consideration of the following description and claims and the attached drawings, of which there are two sheets, a

and in which: V

Figure 1 represents a front elevation of an automobile frame with steerable road wheels mounted thereon;

Figure 2 represents a transverse sectional view through the wheel suspension structure illustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 represents a plan view of the wheel suspension structure illustrated in Figures 1 and 2; v

v Figure 4 represents an enlarged, detailed, sectional-view showing the connection between the top of the rubber spring and the steering knuckle sleeve illustrated in Figure 2;

Figure 5 represents a sectional view taken along the plane indicated by the line 5-5 in Figure 2;

Figure 6 re resents a transverse sectional view 2 through a wheel suspension system similar to that shown in Figure 2 but employing a modified form'of spring; 7

Figure 7 represents an enlarged, detailed, sectional view illustrating the connection between the rubber tension spring and the steering knuckle sleeve'illustrated in Figure 6;

Figure 8 illustrates a transverse sectional view through a further modified form of the spring suspension; and i a a Figure 9 represents a transverse sectional view through still another modified form of the spring suspension.

The drawings illustrate means for employing a tubular rubber spring to support the steerable road wheels of an automobile. However, it should be obvious that the same type of spring and guide mechanism could be employed for mounting the non-steerable or rear wheels of an automobile. 1

The suspension system is illustrated as being applied to an automobile having longitudinally extending side rail members 20 which are connected attheir forward end by a cross member 22 and to which the rigid axle member 24 is attached along a line to the rear of the cross member 22. The side rails 20 are further braced with respect to the body of the automobile by the vertically sloping braces 26. Wheel house panels 28 extend upwardly from the side rails 20 along the sides of the vertical braces 26v and curve outwardly toward the wheels 30.

Thev rigid axle 24 consists of a downwardly opening, channel shaped member having flanges 32 turned outwardly along the lower edges thereof. The ends of the axle are bent downwardly as at 34 and outwardly toward the sides of the automobile in generally horizontal ends 36. The channel shaped cross section of the axle is closed to form ahollow box section by-the reinforcing plates' 38secured to the/flanges 32 along the downwardly bent portions 34 and ends 36. Brace plates 40 have'their upper ends secured to the outside of the side rails 20 and their, lower ends secured to the bent down portions 34 of the axle by the bolt 42 while brackets 44 are riveted to the into holes tapped in the ends of the generally Generally cup vertically extending king pins 50. shaped bushings 52 having rubber or other deformable material bonded therein are positioned 3 between the bolts 48 and the end portions 38 of the axle 24 to insulate the bolts from the axle.

The upper ends of the king pins 58 are provided with axially extending tapped apertures 54 which are arranged to receive the lower ends of the stud bolts 56. The stud bolts 56 extend upwardly through the cap members 58 and through the apertured ends of a transverse brace rod 68. The cap members 58 are each provided with a central portion 62 which is downwardly concave, semi-spherical in shape. A convex, semi-spherical washer 84 is positioned around the stud bolt 53 and between the spherical portion 62 of each cap 58 and the upper end of the king pin 50. A washer 65 having a concave, semispherical lower surface is positioned around each bolt 58 and over the dome portions 82 of the caps 58. The ends of the cross bar 86 are drawn down tight against the washers 66 by means of nuts 68 to tightly clamp the cap members 58 and washers 64 to the top of the king pins 50.

The caps 53 are provided with cylindrical downturned flanges I8, the inner edges of which are extended and bent inwardly toward the center of the automobile as at l2 to form ears for attaching brace plates '54 which are connected to the ears by means of the cap screws I6 (see Figure 3). Each brace plate It has secured thereto, as by welding, a brace rod 78 which has its central portion curved partially around the cap 58 and which is provided with a forwardly and downwardly extending arm 88 and a rearwardly and downwardly extending arm 82. The forwardly extending arms 80 of each brace rod are passed through holes in the wheel house panels 28 and are connected to brackets 84 secured to the front cross member 22 and the rearwardly extending arms 82 are also passed through the wheel house and extend to other brackets 86 secured to the vertically sloping braces-26 on the automobile body.

Thus the kin pin 58 is rigidly supported in a generally vertical position, its lower end being mounted on the end of the axle 24 and its upper end being braced to the front cross member 22 and the vertical brace 28. The king pins on the opposite sides of the vehicle are further interconnected and braced with respect to each other by the tie rod 60. The caps 58 are self-aligning between the semi-spherical surfaces of the washers 84 and 68 so as to be normal to the axes of the king pins 58. Attention is called to the fact that ample clearance is provided between the caps 58 and the stud bolts 58 as at 8 1.

A sleeve 88 is telescopically positioned about each king pin 58 while bearings 98 carried in apertures in the ends of a bearing retainer tube 92 are positioned between the inside surface of the sleeve 88 and the surface of the king pin 50. The bearings 90 are generally cylindrical but have their central portions turned along a radius to roll along the surface of the king pin 58 and their ends tapered to roll along the inside surface of the sleeve 88 as disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,304,291, issued to Nils Erik Wahlberg on December 8, 1942.

Washers 98 consisting of annular rings of felt secured betwen the annular metal rings are positioned at each end of-the bearing retainer 92 to prevent dust and moisture which may enter the space between the kingpin and the sleeve from coming in contact with the bearings 98. Coil springs I80 extend between the washers9B and the ends of the sleeve 88 to hold the washers and the bearing retainer between the ends ofthe V Z shaped cross section, the lower flange of which 7 4 sleeve 88. A plate I82 is secured to the underside of a flanged annular plug I83 driven into the lower end of the sleeve 88 and forms an abutment at the end of the sleeve againstwhich the lower end of the lower spring I00 may abut.

The upper spring I08 is held in place by means of an annular ring I04 having a generally is press fitted within the upper end of the sleeve 88 and the upper flange of which is spaced radially inwardly therefrom, just clearing the king pin 58. The upper end of the upper spring I88 abuts against the underside of the central web of the ring I04. Snap rings I85 are positioned in internal grooves at the ends of the sleeve 88 to retain the washers 98 and bearing retainer 92 within the sleeve should either of the springs I break. The upper flange and Web of the annular Z-shaped ring I04 receive and center the lower race I86 of a bearing assembly generally indicated at H17 (see Figure 4) upon the upper end of the sleeve 88. An upper race I88 completes a runway for ball bearings III) while the two races are retained together by the cylindrical ring I I2. The ring I I2 has its lower edge turned inwardly as at i I4 to engage the underside of the lower race I85. The upper edge of the cylindrical ring H2 is also turned inwardly as at IIB to rest upon the upper race I08 and is flanged upwardly and inwardly as at I I8 for a purpose to be described presently.

A forging I23 defines a tapered aperture into which is driven the tapered lower end of the sleeve 88. The forging has a wheel I24 and flange I25 formed thereon for attaching the wheel 38 and a brake backing plate to the forging and sleeve 88. The forging I23 is further apertured as at 26 (Figure 2) to receive the steering knuckle arm I27 (see Figure 1) which is arranged to be connected to suitable steering gear and linkage, shown in dotted lines in Figure 1 at 21A, for turning the sleeve 88 and spindle I24 about the axis of the king pin 58.

It will thus be seen that the king pins 50 are rigidly carried on the frame of the automobile and that the wheels 38 are carried by the sleeves 8.8 which are slidable along and turnable about the king pins 58. The structure just described is similar to the structure described and claimed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,325,894 issued to Nils Erik Wahlberg, Ross H. Phelps and Wallace S. Berry on August 3, 1943. The means for cushioning the vertical movement of the sleeves 88 along the king pins 58 and supporting the frame on the wheels 38 will now be described. The supporting structure on each side of theautomobile being the same, only one side will be described.

The main cushioning member comprises a tubular sleeve 525 formed of rubber or some similar deformable material which will be referred to as a spring since it performs the function usually performed by a metallic coil spring in structures of this type. The spring I28 is positioned telescopically around the sleeve 88 with its upper end adjacent to the upper end ofthe sleeve (see Figure 4). The upper end of the spring is thickened in wall thickness and bonded, as by vulcanizing, to portions of an annular plate I29 and an annular ring I38. The ring I38 is generally channel shaped in cross section and has its intermediate web portion welded as at I3I of the underside of the plate I29. The plate I29 extends radially outwardly the concentric cylindrical rings I35 and I36.

beyond the outer flange I32 of the ring I30 and is turned downwardly in a second cylindrical flange I33. That portion of the plate I29 between the flanges I32 and I33 defines a'series of apertures I34. It will be noted that the endof the spring I28 extends over the plate I29 to within the circle of apertures I34, through the i apertures, and over both sides of the flanges I32 and I33. 7

Tension loads on the spring I28 are transmitted to the'plate I29 and ring I30 by shear stresses inthe bonded connection between'the rubber and the metal and by tension'stresses in that portion of the rubber which extends through the apertures I34. Attention is called to the fact that the flanges I32 and I33 increase the bonded areagconsiderably over the area of a single flat plate of equal diameter, thus reducing the shear stress on the bonded connection.

The'inn'er flange of the ring I30 is arranged to fit around the inwardly flared flange IIBof the ring I I2 and bear upon the inwardly turned portion I I8 and the upper race I08 so that the upper end of the spring I28 is supported upon the upper end of of the sleeve 88 and is rotatable with respect thereto by-virtue of the bearing I01.

' The lower end of the spring I28 is also increased in wall thickness and bonded around The rings I35 and I36 are spaced radially from each other and each has an outturned flange I31 on end of the spring I28 extends over the inside of the ring 535 and bottom of the lower flange I31 and through the apertures I38.

' The outer rim portions of the flanges I31 extend out of the end of the spring which is bonded to the rest of the surfaces of the flanges and rings I35 and I36. The extending rims of the flanges I31 bear against the lower end of a rigid cylinder I40 while the thickened portion of the lower end of the spring engages the inside of the lower end of the cylinder to maintain the rings I35 and I36 and cylinder I40 in concentric relationship. The upper end of the cylinder I40 extends telescopically about the spring I28 and king pin to the cap 58 and is secured as by vwelding to the inside of the cylindrical flange The upper end of the spring I28 is thus sup ported through the sleeve 80, forging I23 and wheel 30 from the ground while the lower'end of the spring supports the body of the automobile through the cylinder I40, cap '58 and king pin 50 by tension loads in the spring. The elastic properties of rubber under tension produce a spring which prevents the transmission of high frequency vibrations and noises from the wheels to the body of the automobile. Attention is now called to Figure 5 which illustrates another feature of the spring I28. If a rubber cylinder is stretched from its ends, it will be reduced in cross section in the middle, both in wall thickness and in outside and inside diameter so that the spring I28 would tend to grip the outer surface of the sleeve-88 if the spring were a true-cylinder. To avoid this, the outer surface of the spring between the ends thereof is slotted longitudinally as at [M either by'cutting away the rubber or by molding the slots in the-spring. The slotsdo not extend completely through the spring but leave a relatively thin wall I42, the purpose of which will appear presently. Theeffect of the slots MI is to form a series of separate rubber bands I43.

When the spring is stretched, the reduction in cross section referred to above takes placewithin each individual band I43 and there is little tendency for the diameterof the'spring as a whole to be reduced. Thus the spring will not grip the sleeve 88 and change the characteristics of the spring. The dotted lines in Figure 5 indicate the position of the spring when at rest while the full lines indicate the spring when under tension. 7

The inner wall I42 will be seen to form a seal from the cylinder I40 to the ring I30 at the top of the spring. The top of the cylinder I40 is closed-by the cap member 58 and the ring I30 and ring II2 continue the seal around the bearing I01 to the sleeve 88 so that no dust or moisture can reach the bearing I01 or the bearings through the upper end of the sleeve.

A corrugated rubber bellows I44 has its upper edge snapped around the edge of the plug I03 and the plate 102 at the lower end of the sleeve 88 while the lower end of the bellows I44 is snapped over the raised rim of an annular wash-' er I45. The annular washer I45 is positioned between the lower end of the king pin 50 and the upper surface of the end portion 36 of the axle member 24. The washer I45 serves to seal the lower end of the bellows I44 to the cross member to prevent dust and moisture from en-. tering through the bellows to the space between the lower ends of the king pin and the sleeve 83.

A stud bolt I48 has one end threaded into a tapped aperture in the forging I 23 and serves as a connection for the lower end of a strut type shock absorber I50. The upper end of the shock absorber I50 is attached to a generally U-shaped bracket I52 depending from the cross brace 60. The connection between the upper end of the shock absorber and the bracket I52 is made flexible by the use of the rubber biscuits I54 positioned around the bayonet end l56-of the shock absorber on either side of the bracket and held in place by the metal washers I58 and nut I60. The connection between the lower end'of the shock absorber and the bolt I48 isalso made relatively flexible bymean-s of the rubber sleeve I62 positioned around the bolt I48 and within an eye I64 on the'bottom of the shock absorber. The ends of the sleeve I62 are compressed between the flared washers I66 by the nut I68. The flexible connections at each end of the shock absorber permit the shock absorber to swing to various positions as the forging I23 is turned v about the king pin 50.

A plate I10 is secured between the forging I23 and the shock absorber I50 by the bolt I48 and is provided with a horizontal stop portion I12 arranged to abut against and to compress the rubber'bumper I14 secured to the horizontal end 36 of the axle member 24 when the forging I23 and sleeve are at the lower limit of their travel along the king pin 50. The bumper I14 is known as the rebound bumper.

At the upper limit of travel along the king pin '50, the sleeve 88 is arranged to bring the upper surface of the plate I29 against the rubber ring I16 and compress it against the cap memberv 58 7 which extends from the cap 58 through the wheel house panel 23 and is provided at its upper end with a filter cap I30.

The modified form of the invention illustrated in Figures 6 and 7 is substantially the same as that just described except in the construction at the ends of the rubber spring which will be described presently. Another variation from the preferred form of the invention is in the method of connecting the brace rods from the frame members of the body to the top of the king pin 50. Instead of being formed as a continuous bar welded to the side of the cap 58, the brace rods, one of which is shown in full at 292, are separate and are provided with eyes 28l and 283 which are positioned around the shank of a stud bolt 256. The stud bolt 256 is threaded into the tapped aperture 54 in the upper end of the king pin in the same manner as the stud bolt 56 in the first form of the invention and is passed through the end of the cross brace 60 as well as the semispherical washers 64 and 66 and the cap member 58. The eyes 28! and 283 of the brace rods are thus securely clamped to the king pin by the same nut 68 which secures the cross brace and cap member to the king pin.

The rubber spring 223 has its upper end secured as by bonding to the serrated under surface 234 of the annular plate 229. The upper outer edge of the plate 229 is beveled as at 233 and the end of the spring extends over the edge of the plate and the beveled surface and is bonded thereto. The serrated surface 234 is formed .by cutting or otherwise forming spiral or concentric grooves in the plate 229 or by forming. a series of pyramidal projections on the surafce. The. bonded .area between the plate and. the rubber is, thus materially increased over the area. of a smooth plate of similar dimensions and the stress on the bond is proportionately reduced-H A cylindrical flan e 239 e t nds be ow the inner edge'of the plate 229 and engages the inwardly flared vertical flange H-B on the bearing assembly 1.01 which is of the same construction as that shown in the first form of the invention. Theylower end of the spring 2-28 is bonded to the. serrated, upper surface of the annular plate 235 w-hich-.is.,serrated in hte same manner as the upper plate 229. The lower plate 235 has an outeririm portion 23'! which extends radially outwardly beyond the area of bond between the spring and the plate and which is arranged .to engage the bottom of the cylinder I49. As in the preferred form of the invention shown in Figures 1 to the outer lower edge of the sprin 228 is arranged: to engage the inside lower edge of the cylinder I49 and center the lower end of the spring and the plate 235 with respect to the cylinder I 40.

The spring 228 is thus stretched between the upper plate 229 and upper end of the sleeve 83 and the lower plate 233 and lower end of the cylinder 1549 toyieldingly support the weight of the vehicle on the wheels. The spring .228 may, of course, zbe'grooyed ,as shown in Figure 5.

The annular. plate 229 at the top of thespring 228 is arranged to abut against the rubber ring 1.16 at theup'perlimit ,of movement of the spindle. 124,..andasleeve 83 withrespect to the king piniin the. same Jnanner as the upper surface of the .plate 1:29 :in figure 2. In other respects the operation =of;.-.the structure shown in Figuresfi and"? is. the .sam'eas that shown in Figure 2.

.Figures-.:8n,-.and...9 illustrate further modified forms of rubber springs and may be used interchangeably in either of the wheel supporting structures just described. In Figure 8 the upper end of the spring 328 is enlarged in wall thickness and bonded around the outer edges of an annular plate 329-and a generally channel shaped ring 333. The inner flange of the channel shaped ring 339 engages the bearing ID! in the same fashion as the' flanges I30 and 230 in the other forms of the invention to rotatably support the upper end of the spring on the top of the sleeve 83. The outer flange 332 of the ring 330 and the outer rim 333 of the plate 329 are bent downwardly and outwardly in spaced parallel relationship while the central portion of the plate 329 is spaced upwardly from and extends over the ring 335. The central portion of the plate 329 also defines a series of apertures 334. The enlarged end of the spring 328 extends around the outer flange 332 and bent down rim 333 and through the apertures 334. This permits the area of bond between the rubber and the metal parts to be increased by extending the bond over the surfaces'which were welded together in the first form of the invention. The plate 329 and ring 339 are prevented from being separated by the rubber bonded therebetween and by their overlapping relationship. Loads transmitted from the rubber to the plate 329 and its outer rim 333 by the bond connection between the spring and plate will draw the plate toward the ring 333 and compress the rubber between the plate and ring so that there will be a clamping action as well as the bonded connection tending to hold the rubber to the ring and plate.

The lower end of the spring 328 is enlarged in wall thickness and bonded around the spaced annular rings 335 and 333. The lower ring 336 is spaced below, and extends inwardly beyond, the upper ring 335 and defines a series of apertures 338 through which the rubber material of the spring extends. Each of the rings 335 and 336 are flanged upwardly and inwardly in the center and the outer edge of the upper ring 335 extends outwardly from the rubber of the spring 328 to engage the lower edgeof the cylinder I40 as at 331 in the same manner as in the other forms of the invention. The same type of clamping action as occurs at the top of the spring will also be present between the lower rings 335 and 333 to assist the bond between the rubber and the rings in holding the rings and spring together.

The spring 428 illustrated in Figure 9 has its ends secured to and bonded around the ring 432 at the top of the spri and the ring 435 at the bottom of the spring. The upper ring 432 is provided with a fiat annular upper portion 429, the upper surface of which is arranged to act as a bumper in cooperation with the rubber ring I13 and the lower surface of which rests upon and may be secured to a short cylinder 439. The cylinder 435 engages the bearing N31 to support the upper end of the spring in the same manner as in the other forms or the invention. The outer part of the ring 432 slopes downwardly and outwardly, terminating in a short annular flange 433 and defines a series of apertures 434 through which the rubber of the spring extends as an integral part of the spring. The lower ring 435 also slopes downwardly and outwardly from a central annular flange 436 and defines a series of apertures 438 through which the rubber of the spring extends. The rubber is also bonded around the inner flange 436 of the ring 435 but does not extend completely to the outer lower edge 431 which is arranged to engage the lower edge of the cylinder M0. The tapered shape of the ring '432 .and 435 has the advantage of increasing the area of bond between the rubber and the rings within the narrow space between the sleeve 88 and the cylinder [40 and also makes the rings easier to form since they may conveniently be made as stampings.

While we have described our invention in'some detail, we intend this description to be an example only and not as a limitation of our invention, to which we make the following claims.

We claim:

1. A spring for a wheel suspension system comprising a cylinder of deformable material, an annular plate having a flange about its outer rim, and an annular ring of channel shaped cross section secured to said plate and spaced inwardly from said flange, the end of said cylinder being .integrally bonded about the outer portions of said plate and said ring.

2. A spring for a wheel suspension comprising a pair of ring having'portions of channel shaped annular plate and spaced radially inwardly from said flange, that portion of said annular plate between said flange and said annular ring defining a series of apertures, the end of said cylinder being bonded about both sides of the outer portions of said annular plate and to said annular ring and extending through said apertures.

4. A spring comprising a tube formed of deformable material, longitudinally spaced, overlapping rings of rigid material bonded Within the ends of said spring, the rings at one end of said spring extending radially inwardly from the inner wall thereof, the rings at the other end of said spring extending radially outwardly from the outer wall thereof.

5. A spring comprising a generally cylindrical member formed of deformable material, annular rings positioned at each end of said spring and having spaced cylindrical flanges extending toward the midsection of said spring, each of said annular rings defining a series of apertures positioned between said flanges, the ends of said spring being bonded to the surfaces of said flanges and extending through said apertures, and portions on each of said annular rings extending laterally beyond said deformable material for engagement with spring supporting structure.

NILS ERIK WAHLBERG. GUSTAV V. HEDSTRCM.

References Cited in the file of this-patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

